Casa din Deal, Ocnita (Romania)

 

Located on the scenic hills of Valcea county, in Ocnita, Casa din deal B&B is the perfect choice for spending a quaint holiday, far from the fuss and crowd of the city or of the main tourist attractions in Romania. This B&B is very close to the salty water pool in Ocnita (200 m) and 3.5 km from the Ocnele Mari salt mine, on a hill that offers picturesque views all year round.

Alf Leila Wa Leila (Hurghada)

Alf Leila Wa Leila (or 1001 Nights) Hotel was our oasis of coolness in Hurghada (Egypt) in July. When it's 50 degrees Celsius outside and you want to hide as far as possible into the ground, a 4-star resort built to look like an Arab city is your escape. 

Mai Am Matrusaden Guesthouse (Mui Ne)

Our second holiday in Mui Ne didn't start very well. We had booked three double rooms (two with garden view and one with sea view) at this guesthouse on booking.com. After a 5-hour drive from Saigon, we finally got there around 9:30 pm to find out that there were no rooms with sea view available. We showed the manager the booking confirmation and it took him half an hour to understand what we want. After he apologized for not having the room we booked, he gave us a room with garden view for a cheaper price ($35 instead of $40). OK, we took it. After we unpacked, surprise! the AC was not working and there was no other room available, except for one with the view to some metal roofs. No way! We wanted what we had booked or at least something reasonable. After another half an hour trying to repair the AC, the manager gave in and told us that our first night there would be free and that we would move to another room after the guests leave in the morning. Well, it was already 11 pm, what could we have said? OK. The troubles ceased next morning and we started having a great time (even if sometimes there was no hot water etc etc.)

Reception and part of the restaurant area.

The guesthouse is really pretty and well taken care of. It is located on the main street between Phan Thiet and Mui Ne, but quite far from what everybody considers to be the "main area", at 148 Nguyen Dinh Chieu. However, it has a nice small private beach, some really good restaurants in the neighborhood, and it is really cozy.

Rooms are large and clean and beds are great. Some rooms have a small fridge, some of them don't (the standard ones). Wi-fi works well, especially in the courtyard. Each rooms or pair of rooms actually form a small house with a nice porch:

Each superior room has its own private porch.

Breakfast is served from 6 to 10 and you get one dish and one drink for free. All the items in the menu are reasonably priced. The restaurant area is really nice, but most of the tables are too low and there is not enough room for legs.

The stretch of public beach next to the guesthouse.

For the picky ones, there is a great restaurant 200 m away on the other side of the street - Lap Thao, at 239b Nguyen Dienh Chieu. As for the tours you can book, we bought one from the manager for $30 (5 people) which included the Red Dunes, the Fairy Stream, the Fisherman Village, the White Dunes, and the Red Canyon.

Mai Am Matrusaden Guesthouse - 148 Nguyen Dinh Chieu, Ham Tien, Central Mui Ne Beach, Phan Thiet; http://www.guesthousemaiam.com/

Green Hotel (Vung Tau)

Right across the street from the Back Beach, Green Hotel is conveniently located for the ones who mostly go to the beach during their holidays in Vung Tau, but it is quite far from the hydrofoil station or from downtown Vung Tau.

However, this is a very good 3-star hotel. Rooms are large, air-conditioned, clean, well furnished and equipped. We stayed in a superior double room and paid $30/night. Free wi-fi is available in the entire hotel.

Service at the reception has been quick and effective. I can't say the same thing about the two bartenders in the lobby - do not order more than one cocktail at a time. We asked for five and it took them the same amount of time and concentration it usually takes a brain surgeon to perform an operation.

A free buffet breakfast with plenty of choices is served every morning from 6 to 9 in one of the three restaurants.

Green Hotel - 147C Thuy Van, Thang Tam ward, Vung Tau, Ph: 0646 251003, Fax: 0646 251006; http://www.greenhotel.vn/ Major credit cards accepted.

Best Western Plaza - Dalat

Best Western Plaza is located in Central Dalat, 100 m away from Xuan Huong Lake,  a 5-minute walk from Dalat Market and a 5-minute drive from Dalat Golf Course.

Best Western Plaza Dalat - front view

It features a gym, free Wi-Fi, bike rental and parking, as well as ticketing and car rental services.

Even if it boasts air-conditioned rooms, this is not true. There is no AC except for the common areas, but truth is we didn't need any AC  in late October. However, the rooms are really spacious and well fitted, furnished with classic wood furnishings and floors. A flat-screen TV, safe and tea/coffee making amenities are provided.

Deluxe Double Room

Deluxe Double Room 405

City Park Restaurant is located on the first floor and serves local specialties for very reasonable prices. The menu offers many tasty lunch and dinner options. Here are some of them:

Crab and corn soup

Tuna Salad - yes, Dalat salads are perfect!

Fried Spring Rolls

Grilled Octopus with Chili Salt

Breakfast is included in the price of the room, but it wasn't the best we'd had: eggs (fried or omelet), pho, 2 kinds of cold cuts, various Vietnamese rice cakes and sauce dishes, coffee and tea, juices.

Would we stay there again? Yes, but not before trying other hotels in the area (it would be a pity not to, there are so many beautiful hotels in Dalat).

Ha Long Hotel (Vung Tau)

Double room, garden view

Located on the street bearing the same name, next to Dua Beach, Ha Long is a spotless 2-star hotel that sells for $21 per double room (garden view) - 102 Ha Long St.

All 36 rooms are equipped with flat TV screens, complimentary wi-fi connection, air-conditioning, and mini-fridge. Prices for all the drinks in the minibar or available for room service vary between 10,000 VN and 15,000 ($0.5-$0.7).

The bathrooms are also large and spotlessly clean, fitted with brand new amenities.

It's a very quiet and clean 7-story place, on the shore of the ocean, with stunning sea view or views to the lush green hills behind. It offers room service and  a restaurant located at the first floor, but there are lots of dining options within feet of hotel.

View from the hotel

View from the courtyard

We booked the room in advance and paid by credit card on Agoda. It seems it's not listed on booking.com, so any reservation must be paid at the moment of booking.

Ha Long Gotel - 102 Ha Long Street, Ward 2, Dua Beach, Vung Tau, Vietnam.